Sermon Tone Analysis

The LORD will not Abandon His People

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Last week, we saw King Saul victorious in battle and we left the text with the people of Israel going to renew the Kingdom.

It absolutely boggles the mind to think of how gracious God is with us as a people.

We saw in Saul a king that had some challenges but persevered.

He was radical in his leadership style.

Anytime you grow an army by cutting up two oxen and sending wording throughout the land saying, anyone who does not show will look like this, you are a radical King.

We looked at the problem of negotiating with Nahash and how as God’s people, as black people, we need to first of all, stop making treaties with people who hate so that you can be there slave.

Second, people who hate will only accept you on their terms and the terms are never good.

As a matter of fact, Nahash said he wanted to cut their right eye out, to make them a “disgrace to all Israel”.

So now they have made your look normal to you but they have determine that the only way they will accept you is if you look like a “disgrace to your own people” yet you are willing to allow this.

It is interesting to me to see the black men Trump is comfortable with.

He is not comfortable with and elected official, who is black.

He is not comfortable with any black man that reads and applies what he reads and is smart.

When he wants to speak to the black community he reaches for Kanye West, who is happy being a “disgrace to all Israel”.

When he wants to reach black America he reaches for Omarosa, it is said, she was voted the most hated woman on television.

We are still negotiating with Nahash when we seek those who hate us to approve our standing in our own community.

Now in chapter 12 we are seeing a very interesting discussion with the prophet.

He is about to discuss some real issues with them and before he does establishes some things between them.

When the people have shifted into a new paradigm, it is time for a real as we say”come to Jesus conversation”.

While God was your king and you were unique we did things a certain way.

Now, you wanted this change but you need to understand, this change does not change your covenant with God.

Your paradigm may change but you still belong to God.

What I mean is, when you change from having a job to owning your business, you cannot do things the same way and you really should not view yourself the same way.

When you are running your own business that changes you.

It means you are a business owner.

A business CANNOT behave like an employee.

A home owner ought not to behave like one who rents.

With this new paradigm comes new challenges and new ways of viewing things.

Not just a new of doing this but a new way of viewing things.

So you have a King now.

You are a nation, like the others.

Before we have this conversation we need to get some things straight about our relationship because I am about to say somethings that are hard to hear.

Samuel says I have been your prophet for a long time.

Have I ever dishonored my office?

Have I stolen from any of you?

Have commited any crimes among you, if so, let’s put it all on the table so we can make it right.

I will pay any restitution that I need to do to settle any accounts.

The people agreed that he had not broken any laws or done anything that has disgraced his office as prophet in Israel.

He began to speak about how God not only kept you but your families, your ancestors, everyone that meant something to you, God kept them.

When your ancestor lost sight of God and forgot about the LORD.

So the LORD turned them over to Sisera, also Philistine.

You, when you were in fear of Nahash, you forgot the LORD, and wanted a King like the “other nations”.

You forgot the LORD and asked for a King.

But God was kind to you and not only gave you the victory but gave you a King.

Here is the warning:

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1 sam 12

Here is the warning from the prophet.

I want you to recognize something, he does not say, in order for you to be blessed your GDP needs to grow every year at least 3% annually.

He did not say, you must like everyone and get along with everybody.

He does not warn them that they must look a certain way.

Their success is tied to their behavior concerning God.

Look at the admonitions.

There are four thing that Israel/IHP must do.

Those four things are spelled out in verse 14:

1Sam.

12:14 אִם־תִּֽירְא֣וּ אֶת־יְהוָ֗ה וַעֲבַדְתֶּ֤ם אֹתוֹ֙ וּשְׁמַעְתֶּ֣ם בְּקֹל֔וֹ וְלֹ֥א תַמְר֖וּ אֶת־פִּ֣י יְהוָ֑ה וִהְיִתֶ֣ם גַּם־אַתֶּ֗ם וְגַם־הַמֶּ֙לֶךְ֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר מָלַ֣ךְ עֲלֵיכֶ֔ם אַחַ֖ר יְהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֵיכֶֽם

Fear the LORD

Worship the LORD

Listen to his Voice

Do not Rebel against the LORD’s Command

If you do this the prophet says, both you and the king will show that you recognize the LORD as your God.

Let’s unpack this.

How do I fear the LORD?

The word fear is the word yare in the Hebrew which means to fear, to revere, to respect.

The verb fear is in the Qal imperfect form.

Qal is the normative form of most verbs but the issue here is the imperfect.

The imperfect form speaks to an “incomplete action”.

Here the prophet is suggesting you have feared him but your not done yet.

You revered him, but you can give him more.

What the prophet is saying, is you need to step up your game!

If you want to be go to another level, your respect for God has to go to another level.

You can succeed but if you want it to count, step up your respect for God.

Now in the imperfect it also suggests that the incomplete thing will remain incomplete.

What this means is that understand that you will always be able to Fear God more!

There is always another level in your respect for God.

This is not something you can finish and determine you are complete.

Fear God, you’re not finished yet.

How do I Worship The LORD?

This is interesting because even in the english translations there is a bit of tension in the wording.

In the King

James and the New Revised Standard Version the word translates as serve.

In the New Living Translation the word used hear is Worship.

So already, this speaks to me, because the suggestion is the the word servant and worshiper have a close relationship.

The term used in the Hebrew is avadtem, in its plural form

47. עָבַד

עָבַדתם

5647.

עָבַד

5647.

עָבַד ʿabad, aw-bad´; a primitive root; to work (in any sense); by implication, to serve, till, (causatively) enslave, etc.:—x be, keep in bondage, be bondmen, bond-service, compel, do, dress, ear, execute, + husbandman, keep, labour(-ing man, bring to pass, (cause to, make to) serve(-ing, self), (be, become) servant(-s), do (use) service, till(-er), transgress (from margin), (set a) work, be wrought, worshipper,

What we are learning from this word is the worshiper is a servant.

But the word has another connotation which is that the worshiper is a slave to God.

We have spoken about this before especially when we look at many of the Pauline epistles.

The slave has only law and that is the law of his or her master.

This means, if God tells me to do a certain thing and the world tells me to do something else, I must obey God.

I am a servant of God.

I am a worshiper.

I cannot deviate.

If I want to step my game up, I have got to be a worshiper.

I cannot succeed and serve two masters.

That means, I cannot even be my own God and get the results I want.

How do you serve God?

The way you worship God? Here’s a question.

Would you be ok with the service you have rendered God?

If someone kept their word to you, the way you keep your word to God, would you bless them?

Before you answer, remember, you did not go to bible study this week.